“Thank you for picking it up for me . ”


  With a sincere look of gratitude on her face, Xue Qilin gazed at Xihe .

  “No problem . ”


  Faced with Xihe’s indifferent attitude, Xue Qilin spurted out an ill-timed laughter .

  “Wait, what are you laughing at……?”


  “I’m laughing at you!”


  “Laughing at me? What’s funny about me?”


  “Your appearance is funny!”


  “My appearance?”


  Xihe examined herself blankly .

  At this time, she looks like a cat who fell into water .

  The hair is dripping wet .

  The fur on the pair of cat ears and nine tails is sticking together chaotically .

  Xihe looks rather down and out, so Xue Qilin couldn’t help laughing .

  However, her laughter was suddenly cut short . She discovered the other party’s indecent appearance .

  The plain white dress is clinging to Xihe’s graceful body and is outlining beautiful curves, and it’s even a bit transparent .

  “Cough cough……”


  In line with the principle “do not look at what is contrary to propriety”, Xue Qilin moved her eyes away, embarrassed .

  Although she is already accustomed to seeing herself and Shui Yun’er naked, but she still can’t calmly accept the radiance emitted by the indecent appearance of a not familiar person of the opposite sex .

  Her cheeks became a little hot, and the lass blushed .

  “What’s wrong? Your face is a bit red . ”


  The person herself doesn’t seem to care about her indecent appearance . Is it because Xue Qilin is a girl just like herself?

  “It’s nothing, I’m fine……”


  Xue Qilin gave a perfunctory reply . At the same time, while acting as if nothing happened, she changed the subject .

  “Wet clothes are really uncomfortable……”


  “Indeed…… I’ll help you dry them, okay?”


  “Oh, okay — wait, you wouldn’t want me to undress, would you?”


  “Is this a problem?” Xihe tilted her head, “We are both girls, so there’s nothing to fret about, right?”


  “Uh, I’m shy……”


  It’s not a problem if it’s only Xue Qilin who undresses . But if Xihe also undresses, that wouldn’t be very convenient . As for the reason…… Xue Qilin, naturally, won’t tell it to others .

  “Weirdo . ”


  Xihe covered her mouth with a hand .

  Then, clear laughter flowed out from between her fingers . Although her smile is rather light, but she is indeed smiling .

  Seeing Xihe smile for the first time, Xue Qilin grinned as if infected .

  “In fact, you don’t have to undress . ”


  While smiling, Xihe waved one of her tails . With just this, the clothes of the two people dried up in an instant .

  “Did you drew the water away?”


  Staring at the water ball suspended on Xihe’s tail, Xue Qilin asked thusly .

  Xihe responded with a “mhm”, flicked her tail, and threw the water ball into the river .

  “Xue Qilin, let me borrow your flame . ”


  “What do you mean?”


  Without answering, Xihe extended a tail towards the flame floating in midair . As if it lit up, Xihe’s tail suddenly emitted a flame .

  “Say, what is your ability?” Xue Qilin probed with hesitation, “Can your ability control the five elements?”


  “More or less . Each tail of a Nine Lives Cat can control one of the five elements . ”


  “But you have nine tails . That accounts for metal, wood, water, fire, and earth . And what more?”


  Xihe once used fire and turned it into water . As for her tails, they are hard enough to resist Empyrean Universe . It must be because they are filled with earth qi .

  “Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning . ”


  Xihe spoke calmly .

  “Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning? Isn’t that included in the five elements?”


  “I can’t explain it very well…… If I have to say it, I can trigger phenomenons directly . They’re evolved forms of the five elements . ”


  “Oh, I see……”


  Xue Qilin understood instantly .

  To use ink as an analogy to describe the difference between the two, when Xue Qilin needs ink, she slowly grinds an inkstick . The other party’s ink, on the other hand, is already made, skipping the process of grinding inkstick .

  To put it plainly, it is a difference in methods and means .

  Even though the goal is the same, there are more than one way to achieve it .

  But why is she able to control spiritual qi? This is something that has been puzzling Xue Qilin . Is it because they have multiple functions? If this is really the case, then Xue Qilin really envy’s Xihe, who has such convenient tails .

  Although she is still curios and puzzled, but Xue Qilin feels that it would be a bit tactless to continue with her questions .

  After all, with her and Xihe’s current standpoints, the two are very likely to oppose each other again . The situation right now can only be regarded as a temporary truce — or in other word, the reason why they temporarily lost the grounds for fighting is because the both of them are of one mind about who the enemy is at the moment .

  “– hey, should we ascertain our whereabouts?”


  Phecda, who was put aside, suddenly chimed in and reminded .

  Waking with a start, Xue Qilin slapped her forehead .

  “Yes, I almost forgot about it!”


  Then, the lass began to look around .

  In the light emitted by fire, which was enhanced several times, part of the environment, that has been hidden in the dark, has emerged .

  “It really is an underground river……”


  The place where the two are located is a cave that is neither wide nor narrow .

  The rock walls are uneven, and there are a number of stalactites protruding from the ceiling . It looks like the cave was naturally formed .

  The underground river is running along the cave and extending into the dark, with no end visible at either extremity . Its water probably comes from Mirror Moon Lake .

  “What do we do next — what do you think?”


  Xue Qilin pulled her gaze away from a dark extremity and found Xihe staring at her back, unable to take her eyes off .

  “You are hurt . ”


  Xihe raised her tail and pointed at Xue Qilin’s back .

  “Really……”


  Xue Qilin turned her head around with annoyance .

  “Hey, I can’t see……”


  She could only see torn fabric . The ruined clothes are probably exposing the entire back .

  No matter how she turned her head, she couldn’t see the wounds on her back .

  However, she could feel the burning and tingling sensation coming from her back . She is indeed injured, and the range of injury is quite extensive . Fortunately, the wounds should not be deep, not deep enough to reach the bone . Otherwise, there would be a pool of blood on the ground by now .

  “It shouldn’t be a big deal……”


  Since it is only shallow flesh wounds, the bleeding appears to have stopped . This kind of wounds are nothing to Xue Qilin .

  When she heard that, Xihe creased her eyebrows immediately .

  “It’s better to deal with it now . ” She suddenly hesitated, “And your hand……”


  “My hand? Do you mean my right hand?”


  Previously injured by Xihe, Xue Qilin’s right forearm is eerily inflamed and swollen at places . Not only is it mixed with distinct dark bruises, but it also oozes watery blood . Against the background of the originally fair skin, all this is particularly eye-catching .

  Xihe nodded gently, and her cold face revealed an apologetic expression .

  “I didn’t pull my punches at the time . Is it broken?”


  When she heard that, Xue Qilin was taken aback .

  “Uh…… actually, I really wanted to take you life at the time . So, don’t mind it……”


  “Um……”


  Xihe fell silent .

  Does she not know what to say, or does she already feel relieved? Xue Qilin couldn’t tell by judging from Xihe’s face .

  Xue Qilin tried to move her right hand while muttering, “Well…… it didn’t break . But I can’t lift it . It should be dislocated . ”


  “Let me take a look . ”


  With that, Xihe stood up .

  Blinking her eyes, Xue Qilin looks like she heard something incredible .

  “Do you know medicinal skills?”


  “I do . ”


  After a short reply, Xihe knelt in front of Xue Qilin . She curled her tails around Xue Qilin’s right hand and lifted it, and then touched Xue Qilin’s wound with both hands .

  The pain coming from her hand made Xue Qilin frown .

  “I had to learn medicinal skills . ”


  Xihe spoke lightly while examining the wound .

  Why had she to learn medical skills? Feeling surprised, Xue Qilin asked .

  “Why?”


  “If I didn’t learn medical skills, many martial demons would have no other choice but to wait for death . There aren’t many doctors — I mean human doctors — willing to treat martial demons . ”


  “.……”


  Xue Qilin fell silent . Is it because martial demons are hated?

  “We can only rely on ourselves…… Although Spirit Moon Valley occasionally sends people to treat our wounded, but once a pressing situation takes place…… while the grass grows, the horse starves . I don’t want to watch my comrades die . We can only save ourselves . ”


  “.…… What about the others? I mean Martial Demon Realm’s other martial demons, have they also learned medicinal skills?”


  “Most martial demons who can take human form know medicinal skills . However, there are not many irregular martial demons in Martial Demon Realm . Most Earth Realm martial demons have left Martial Demon Realm for Spirit Mon Valley . There–”


  Xihe looked up at Xue Qilin, and bitterness and sorrow welled up on her face .

  “They can live more like a person . ”


  “Live more like a — person……”


  Xue Qilin’s lowered her head and he murmured .

  She understands what the other party means .

  If he is not of our kin, his heart is sure to be execrable — humans are highly exclusive creatures . They will reject humans of other races, tribes, creeds, and more, let alone a completely different species like martial demons .

  People will take action to eliminate elements that disturb them .

  Martial demons possesses the potential to rival humans and can threaten their dominant position .

  This alone is enough to reject, loath, and discriminate against martial demons .

  Wary, judges others by ones own measure, embraces distrust, and excludes — this is a person .

  Are people bad?

  No, if something is to blame, then that would be the “dark side” .

  But, is it enough for martial demons to join Spirit Moon Valley to live more like a person?

  Xue Qilin thinks that it isn’t .

  Deep down, people don’t acknowledge Spirit Moon Valley .

  A person is a person because they are born a “person” . No matter how they compromise and imitate, and even abandon their hometown and renounce their martial demon identity, a martial demon can never become a “person” .

  This is something foreordained from the moment all things were born in the world and is unalterable .

  The exception to this rule, Spirit Moon Valley, is only an exception because people are intimidated by the Grandmaster brilliance . If there was no Beiming Youyu in the world, could Spirit Moon Valley still possess the fairly aloof status it boats now? Xue Qilin feels that the answer is not what one would hope for .